Debunking Common Heating Myths
When it comes to heating your home, it can be tough to figure out the best strategy for staying comfortable while also avoiding wasted energy. Wasted energy means wasted money, so it’s crucial to keep your system efficient and your habits positive.
There are a lot of heating tips out there that you may have heard and are following, but in reality, they are actually doing more harm than good. We’re pointing out some of the most common home heating myths and how you can adjust your habits to leave them in the past.
Myth: Cranking the Thermostat Will Heat Faster
This one contains a bit of instinct. Want louder music? Turn up the stereo. Need more light? Turn up the brightness. But with a thermostat, you’re setting the temperature you want your home to be.
With the way furnaces and other heaters work, you aren’t controlling the intensity of heat, merely the time it takes for your home to reach a certain temperature. So your system will run at the same level whether you set the thermostat to 72 or 78, it will just run longer if you set it to 78. Plus, if you leave it that high, your heater will run more often, costing you more in energy than necessary.
Myth: Your Ceiling Fan Won’t Help
It’s a common misconception that fans are meant only for cooling. Sure, in the summer, a fan can move fresh air and create a cooling sensation on your skin. But fans don’t actually create cool (or warm) air — they simply move it.
You can actually use your ceiling fan in the winter to circulate warm air collecting around your ceiling. There should be a switch on your fan that dictates the direction the blades spin, therefore changing the direction of airflow. Make sure the fan is spinning clockwise in the winter, as this will pull air up and replace warm air above the fan.
Again, this doesn’t create warm air, but can help reduce the burden on your heating system by keeping you comfortable at a lower temperature.
Myth: Save Money By Closing Unused Vents
So you have an extra room, maybe for guests or an occasional office. If the room only gets used once in a while, maybe once every few weeks or so, you may wonder if it needs to be heated as frequently as your living room or bedroom. The solution? Just close off the vents.
Wrong! While again, this may seem like the right instinct, as you’re preventing airflow from entering the room, it’s actually not helping at all. This is because the warm air is being sent from the furnace, so by the time it reaches your vents, it’s already been produced (and paid for).
If you want greater control over the temperature in different areas of your home, consider installing a zoning system. This allows you to fine-tune the temperature and keep your system running efficiently.
Myth: You Don’t Need a Furnace Tune-Up
The first cold night of winter arrived, you turned on the heat, and relished in the comfort of your home — all set, right? Wrong. You need a proper tune-up from a qualified professional in order to operate an efficient system without the risk of a serious problem.
A technician can review your heating unit and adjust any issues that may be reducing efficiency. They can also catch any problems before they turn into heat-stopping nightmares.
Committed to Keeping Your Home Comfortable
The R. Brooks Mechanical team is dedicated to providing you with the best service for all of your HVAC needs. Contact us today at (855) 912-6489 if you run into any issues with your home heating.